Hungarian plum gnocchi (szilvás gombóc) is basically a dish made with plums wrapped in dough made with mashed potatoes. It is often served as a second dish after a heavier soup but can be a dessert as well.

This dish is a little variation to the recipe that most people use in Hungary. I added poppy seeds instead of bread crumbs to coat the balls. In Transylvania, plum gnocchi is often still coated with poppy seeds.

Poppy seeds are popular at Christmas time as they are full of flavor and are supposed to be calming and nourishing as well. Oh one more, Hungarians believe that poppy seeds are supposed to bring good luck for the new year.

Also, I used prunes instead of fresh plums because fresh plums are not available right now. Honestly, I can’t tell the difference.

These 2 changes to the recipe would make this otherwise already fabulous dish a perfect dish for the holidays.

RECIPE

INGREDIENTS

• about 1 lb russet potatoes (4-5 potatoes)
• 2 cups flour
• 1 egg
• 1 Tbsp butter
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 18 sweet prunes – depending on the size

Coating

• 2 cups poppy seed, ground
• 1 cup walnuts (finally chopped)
• 10 Tbsp butter or coconut oil
• 1 tsp cinnamon or apple pie seasoning
• 6 Tbsp sugar
• pinch of salt

DIRECTIONS

Place the potatoes with the skin on in a large pot. I like to put them on a metal steamer with ‘feet’ so the vitamins and minerals don’t leach into the water and so they don’t soak up too much water. If the potatoes are too wet, the dough will need more flour and will be harder. Add cold water to the pot with a little salt. Bring it to a boil. Turn the heat down to medium low. Cook them with the lid on for about 45 – 60 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. Peel them while they are still hot but you can handle.

Puree the potatoes while they are still warm, I was able to do it as soon as the peels were taken off. I used a potato ricer. I put the potatoes through the larger holes of the ricer, then the smaller ones. It is worth investing in a potato ricer if you want a nice and soft dough. You can use a potato masher too, I have used it before and did a good job too. Let potatoes cool to room temperature.

Add flour, salt, 1 egg, 1 Tbsp of butter to the mashed potatoes. Mix and form into a ball shape. Do not over do it. The dough should not be wet but should stay in one piece. Make sure your potatoes are at room temperature. If they are warm they will take up too much flour. You can use the fridge for 5-10 minutes minutes if needed. (Before adding more flour, cool the dough in the refrigerator).

Let the dough rest for 1 hour on the counter.

Meanwhile, soak the prunes in water to soften them. Set aside.

Melt the butter on low heat and add the poppy seeds stirring frequently for about 10 minutes. Make sure the butter doesn’t burn. Add the cinnamon, sugar and chopped walnuts. Mix. This will be used to coat the balls.

Also, mix the 3 Tbsp sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon and a pinch of salt for the stuffing. This will be used when the balls are served.

Fill a 5 quart pot with about 3 quart water. Bring to a boil with a little a little salt.

After 1 hour, take the dough out of the refrigerator. Cut the dough in half. Place one of them on a flat, floured surface. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface with a rolling pin. Cut out about 9 squares about 3 inches wide and 1 cm thick.

Squeeze the liquid out of the prunes from earlier step.

Assemble the balls. Place one of the dough squares into your palm. Put a plum in the dough. Fold corner by corner gently tucking the stuffing inside and then roll it to make a ball. Do this with each square. Coat them in flour. Please look at the pictures for clarification.

Take the other half of the left over dough and repeat rolling the dough and making little squares. Just like earlier, fill the squares with the prunes. Do this procedure until all the dough is used up.

When the water starts boiling, you can drop the balls in the water one by one with a slotted spoon. Try to gently stir them to prevent them from sticking to the bottom of the pot.

When the dumplings come to the surface, cook them for about another 5 more minutes and remove them with a slotted spoon. 

Coat the dumplings with the poppy seed mixture that you prepared earlier and roll them around until they are well coated. 

Serve warm with a little vanilla sugar, cinnamon sugar or honey. Or all three.

Enjoy! Jó étvágyat!

Recipe, photo and text by twincitiesherbs.